Tommy Vercetti
Thomas "Tommy" Vercetti is a character in the Grand Theft Auto series who appears as the protagonist of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City (set in 1986) and mentioned in The Introduction, a prequel of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (set in 1992), and in the game itself during the mission The Meat Business. Tommy was a member of the forelli crime family but he no longer is. He is now the leader of the Vercetti crime family in Vice City. Biography Early Life Thomas Vercetti was born in Liberty City in 1951. His father owned a printing shop and as a boy Tommy helped him by cleaning the rollers. He had planned to follow in his father's footsteps, but in his own words, chose a different life. Dialogue spoken by Tommy while fleeing police indicates that he had a bad relationship with his mother. Early 1970's Some time prior to 1971, Tommy joined the Forelli Family. He continued to work with the Forelli Family, making his way up the ranks and presumably becoming a made man. In 1971, Sonny Forelli, growing apprehensive of Tommy's increasing power, attempted to set up an ambush for him, under the guise of a hit in Harwood. However, Tommy not only survived, but killed all eleven men that were sent to kill him. He was arrested and convicted of eleven counts of murder. Tommy was sentenced to death for the murders, but, since he kept quiet and turned no evidence on the Forelli Family, Sonny Forelli used judicial connections to commute the sentence. Tommy remained in prison for fifteen years, refusing to divulge any Forelli Family secrets to the LCPD. He was nicknamed "the Harwood Butcher" by the press. Events of Grand Theft Auto Vice City - 1986 In 1986, Tommy was released from prison after Sonny "pulled some strings". Fearing that Tommy is "too well known" in Liberty City, and also wanting to expand into the drugs trade in the south, Sonny sends Tommy to Vice City. Tommy flies to Vice City along with Harry and Lee, meeting Ken Rosenberg at the airport, before immediately driving to a drug deal at the docks. However, Ricardo Diaz, the city's top drug baron had found out about the deal through Gonzalez. Angered by the fact that the deal was organized through Juan Cortez rather than him, Diaz hires three goons to ambush the deal, which results in the deaths of Harry, Lee and Victor Vance. Tommy informs Sonny of the ambush and is reminded that Sonny is "not a man to be screwed with"; Sonny makes it clear he wants his money and his drugs back. Tommy initially works for Ken, starting riots and intimidating jurors. While working for Ken, Tommy also meets Lance Vance, the other dealer, who seeks revenge for his brother who was killed during the initial drug deal. Tommy also works for Juan Cortez, an intermediary for the drug deal, who begins to look into the ambush for Tommy. Meanwhile, Cortez has Tommy steal missile technology chips and kill Gonzalez, who had talked about the deal. Cortez, believing that Ricardo Diaz was responsible for the ambush, asks Tommy to act as protection for Diaz in a deal with the Cubans. The Haitians, enemies of the Cubans, ambush the deal, but are killed by Tommy and Lance. Diaz, seeing potential in Tommy and Lance, hires them to kill gang members who were stealing his money and steal the fastest boat in the city in order to purchase drugs from a dealer on a boat. Lance eventually attempts to kill Diaz for the death of his brother, but is captured by Diaz's men, though he is later freed by Tommy. The two subsequently go on to take revenge, killing Diaz in his own mansion. The death of Ricardo Diaz brings changes to Vice City, allowing Tommy and Lance to step in and continue the crime ring established by Diaz. Tommy also forms a gang,the vercetti crime family. Tommy,begins to look beyond the protection rackets established by Diaz and purchases a number of businesses around the city, most prominently the Malibu Club, the Cherry Popper Ice Cream Factory (a front for a drug running business), InterGlobal Films and the Print Works. After purchasing each business, Tommy helps establish their influence in the city. During this time, Tommy also begins to work for a number of smaller time criminals in the city, including the Cuban leader Umberto Robina and the Haitian leader Auntie Poulet (due to her drugging him), helping both sides attack the other. He also works for Avery Carrington's real estate business, Phil Cassidy's gun running business, Mr. Black's hitman business, Mitch Baker's biker gang, and Kent Paul's management of Love Fist. Tommy also went on to help Juan Cortez escape the city when the GIGN assault his yacht for the missile technology. Sonny Forelli, growing restless and impatient, sends some of his men to collect some of his money from Tommy's businesses. Tommy kills the collectors, although not in time to save Earnest Kelly, the owner of the Print Works, from being injured. Tommy decides to give Sonny fake money printed at the Print Works. Tommy meets Sonny in person at his estate to give him the counterfeit cash, but Sonny informs him that Lance has sided with him, betraying Tommy. A gun battle ensues, with Tommy killing both Lance and Sonny, who also confirms Tommy's suspicion that he was set up in Harwood. Following the deaths of Lance and Sonny, Tommy and Ken had taken over, becoming the most powerful men in Vice City. the vercetti crime family The Vercetti Family is headed by Tommy Vercetti, a renegade Forelli Family member who has assumed control of many businesses and property ventures during the events of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, circa 1986. The organization is known to be involved in various illegal enterprises, including extortion, drug dealing, counterfeit and pornography. They are very territorial, and hostile towards the other gangs in the city, even the Cubans and Vice City Bikers, who are on friendly terms with Tommy Vercetti. The Vercetti Gang are mentioned in passing in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas by The Truth, who mentions that Dwaine and Jethro had their business bought out by "The Mob". history Tommy Vercetti was originally dispatched by the Forelli Family to Vice City to oversee a drug deal funded by Forelli family money; the drug deal was supposed to be the beginning of the Forelli expansion down south towards Vice City. After the deal was ambushed by the Diaz Cartel, Vercetti was forced to start over with no money or property and aided only by Ken Rosenberg, a bent lawyer with Forelli connections. He eventually killed the perpetrator of the drug deal attack, Ricardo Diaz, aided by his new friend Lance Vance. Following the demise of Ricardo Diaz, he received ownership of Diaz's mansion on Starfish Island, using it as his main base of operations, and subsequently acquired various properties and businesses in the city, including a nightclub and porn studio. Tommy cut his ties with the Forelli Family, as his operation expanded greatly throughout Vice City, which thus made Tommy a very rich, powerful and influential man, infuriating Sonny Forelli who was demanding his cut of the profits. Ricardo Diaz controlled a very lucrative protection ring across the island, prior to his death; on hearing of his passing, some of the stores in the North Point Mall were refusing to pay for protection, which led Tommy to vandalize them, sending a message. Not too long after, Tommy drives a security firm out of Ocean Beach so that he can assume control of their protection racket at the Front Page Café, and eventually consolidates his control over the lucrative protection ring by blowing up the Tarbrush Café at the North Point Mall along with Lance, while disguised as police officers. While building up his gang's illicit and legitimate businesses, Tommy also established ties with various criminals and gangs in the city, including the Cubans, Vice City Bikers, crooked property developer Avery Carrington, and smuggler and narcotics trafficker Colonel Juan Garcia Cortez. Tommy's refusal to cut Sonny into the profits, however, prompted him to send collectors to Vice City in an attempt to "tax" his businesses, even going so far as to ordering his men to badly beat Earnest Kelly, which resulted in Tommy killing all of the men that Sonny had sent to collect from his businesses. Following this, Sonny personally confronted Tommy at his mansion, and revealed that Lance had informed him about Tommy's plan to con Sonny with counterfeit money, which ultimately ended with Tommy killing everyone at the mansion in a large shootout, including several Forelli gangsters, Lance Vance and Sonny Forelli. Tommy claimed to be "untouchable" now in Vice City, as Sonny Forelli, the man who wanted him dead the most, had been killed in the massacre, and it was implied that with the death of their boss, the Forelli Family would be weakened too much by his death to be able to send men to take care of Tommy. Following Sonny's death, the Vercetti Family is assumed to have total domination of Vice City. The Vercetti Family, or at least Tommy Vercetti himself, is presumed to remain in power for an undisclosed time. In The Introduction, the prequel film to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Ken Rosenberg, a close friend and business accomplice of Tommy, is assumed to have been abandoned by Tommy after Ken is forced into rehabilitation for prolonged cocaine abuse. Following his release from the Fort Carson Medical Center, Vercetti no longer takes his calls and their relationship is dissolved. This led to Ken's subsequent assignment as a middleman for the Leone Family, the Forelli Family and the Sindacco Family over Caligula's Palace along The Strip, Las Venturas and then employment as an accountant to rapper Madd Dogg. members * Tommy Vercetti - Boss * Lance Vance - Underboss (Formerly/Deceased) * Ken Rosenberg - Adviser (Formerly) * Avery Carrington - Adviser (Formerly/Deceased) * Mike - Enforcer/tommy vercetti's bodyguard * unknown man - tommy vercetti's bodyguard * Mario * an unknown amount of unknown people associates * Juan Cortez - Colonel * Kent Paul - Associate of Ken Rosenberg/manager of Love Fist * Umberto Robina - Leader of the Cubans * Big Mitch Baker - President of the Vice City Bikers * Ricardo Diaz (Formerly/Deceased) - Leader of the Diaz Cartel * Earnest Kelly - Owner of The Print Works * Phil Cassidy - Gunman and arms dealer * Sonny Forelli (Formely/Deceased) - Don of the Forelli Family * Steve Scott - Porn film director * Cam Jones (Can be killed in The Job) - Safecracker/locksmith * Hillary King (Deceased) - Driver Life After 1986 Tommy Vercetti continued to run the criminal underworld of Vice City after 1986; during that time, Tommy's relationship with Ken became increasingly strained due to Ken's cocaine addiction. Tommy eventually got Ken into rehab at the Fort Carson Medical Center in Fort Carson, San Andreas. Although Ken completed rehab and got clean of his addiction, Tommy refused to speak to him following this and essentially cut all ties. Tommy is mentioned by Ken in the mission The Meat Business in Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, leading Carl Johnson to question, "Who the fuck is Tommy?" Rosenberg also calls Vercetti at the introduction video of the aforementioned game, Tommy's secretary answers and tells Ken that Tommy is not taking calls, this is the moment where Rosenberg discovers that Vercetti was ignoring him. Tommy is also mentioned in Kent Paul's website under the list of social problems, saying, "(see, Tom, I didn't mention your name, nowhere. Maybe you won't get us killed now, okay?)" This could mean that Tommy is still alive and in power during the early 2000s. Murders Committed by Tommy Vercetti Optional Murders Category:Video Game Charcters Category:Italian-American Category:Italian Bosses